Almost Home
"Almost Home" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. It is the main track from the 2013 Disney film Oz the Great and Powerful. Commissioned by Disney, Simone Porter, Justin Gray, and Lindsey Ray wrote the bulk of the record. When Carey signed on to sing the song, she and Stargate Tor Erik Hermansen, and Mikkel Eriksen would later change it a bit and ultimately, complete it. On February 6, 2013, it was announced that Mariah Carey had recorded the song for the Disney film with production team Stargate and that it would be released through digital download on February 19, 2013. A pop and electro pop song with an inspirational message, "Almost Home" has received generally favorable reviews from music critics, many of whom praised the vocal performance of Carey, calling it a "return" to her sound of the 1990s after the lukewarm reviews given to her recent releases, including "Triumphant (Get 'Em)" (2012). Following the announcement of the single, it was revealed that Carey had recorded an accompanying music video for it with David LaChapelle. The video premiered on March 8, 2013, the same day Oz the Great and Powerful was released theatrically. Lyrics Hey, hey..... You're almost home You're almost home You're almost home I've seen the light in the sky In the skies are like fireflies Burning bright, just to vanish in the dark I've held hope in my two hands That there would be another chance To find the kingdom, I'm believin' in my heart 'Cause underneath the good there's something greater than you know When you're almost there And you're almost home Just open up your eyes and go, go When you're almost there, almost home Know you're not alone You're almost home When you run, run so far You've forgotten who you are Where you're from, it's like some other universe You count your steps, like they're regrets You catch one breath then lose the rest Wrong is right, right is left And there's nowhere left to turn So don't believe in everything You think, you think you know When you're almost there And you're almost home Just open up your eyes and go, go When you're almost there, almost home Know you're not alone You're almost home When you let your heart be the compass You won't get lost, not if you trust it When you hear the sound of the trumpet Louder than ever before Oh, when you're almost there Almost home Just open up your eyes and go, go Cause you're almost there Almost home Know you're not alone You're almost home When you're almost there Almost home Just open up your eyes and go, go Almost there You're almost home Know you're not alone You're almost home Background and composition On February 6, 2013, it was revealed that Carey was working with Stargate on a song titled "Almost Home", as the lead single from the soundtrack album for the movie Oz the Great and Powerful, with the singer saying in a statement that the song has "a message that works beautifully with the film. It's a feel-good record; it gives you the feeling of reaching your home and being with people that you love." The song was recorded in New York City at Roc The Mic Studios and released in a partnership between Def Jam Recordings and Disney Music Group for the promotional campaign for the movie. The single's artwork was unveiled through Carey's Instagram account on February 14, 2013, with the single itself being released on February 19, 2013. However, it leaked the day before. "Almost Home" is a pop and electropop song, with elements of other music genres such as R&B, hip hop, and EDM. Carey delivers an inspirational message with the song, and, as described by Jocelyn Vena of MTV, the singer's placed "right in the mythical land from the famed movie", singing during the chorus, "When you're almost there/ And you're almost home/ Just open up your eyes and go/ When you're almost there/ Almost home/ Know you're not alone/ You're almost home." Bill Lamb of About.com wrote that Carey fans "had complained about the breathiness of vocals and her voice being buried in the production on recent releases", adding that, in "Almost Home", she sings "in full voice that recalls many of her past hits." Reception Critical response "Almost Home" has received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Bill Lamb of About.com rated the song four out of five stars, deeming solid and enjoyable, despite not being ground-breaking like Carey's previous releases. Jessica Sager from PopCrush awarded the song four and a half starts out of possible five and wrote that the singer makes "a much more triumphant comeback with 'Almost Home' than she did with, well, 'Triumphant (Get 'Em)'", continuing that "Almost Home" is similar Carey's 1990s form, fitting in with songs from her previous albums such as Music Box and Daydream. Alyssa Toomey from E! praised the song, writing, "If you've ever closed your eyes, clicked your heels and wished for more Mariah Carey, then you're in luck, because your musical prayers have been answered", while Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone considered the song's chorus as infectious. Los Angeles Times reviewer Mikael Wood said the song is not as powerful as Carey's "Always Be My Baby" (1995) or "We Belong Together" (2005), but thought the instrumentation was entirely built around her vocals, "which arc upward until they crest in a key change that delivers the thrill we've grown to expect from her." Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine said that with "Almost Home" and "Triumphant (Get 'Em)", Carey proves she still is "the queen of playing it safe," continuing that her vocals are heavily Auto-Tuned to the point of being "virtually unrecognizable". Cinquemani also thought the song was over-produced and dated, comparing it to Alicia Keys' 2007 single "No One". Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly gave a mixed review on the song, saying that while Carey's "body of work is pretty phenomenal, ... it has been a while since she delivered a really transcendent single." Anderson continued saying that "Almost Home" could have been sung by most anybody. Melinda Newman of Hitfix was critical towards "Almost Home", deeming the instrumentation as "cheesy", and commenting that Carey sounds bored singing the song, with her vocals being heavily compressed. Commercial performance Almost Home debuted at number 92 on the Belgian Ultratop chart for the week issued on February 23, 2013. As of June 4, 2013, the song has sold 89,000 copies in the United States. Music video Synopsis and background Following the announcement of the single, it was revealed that Carey had recorded an accompanying music video for it with David LaChapelle, who previously directed the music video for Carey's "Loverboy" (2001). On February 19, 2013, a teaser of the video was aired on Good Morning America. The video premiered on March 8, 2013 at Carey's VEVO channel, the same day Oz the Great and Powerful hit theaters. LaChapelle captures the singer belting the Stargate co-produced song, alone while donning a beautiful black gown. The photographer-director incorporates footage from the fantasy feature throughout the 3 1/2-minute long visual. Reception Almost Home was well received by critics. Erika Ramirez of Billboard gave the song a positive review "Almost a month after releasing "Almost Home," Mariah Carey debuts the David LaChapelle-directed video for Disney's "Oz the Great and Powerful" theme song" ... "LaChapelle captures the singer belting the Stargate co-produced song, alone, while donning a beautiful black gown". Amy Sciaretto in a review for the teaser video praised Carey's dominance in the song for not being a guest for her own in "Triumphant (Get 'Em)" where Sciaretto was critical towards it and said that ... "sank like Titanic". Awards and nominations Track listing ;Digital download #"Almost Home" – 3:47 Credits and personnel ;Recording *Recorded at Roc the Mic Studios, New York City ;Personnel *Songwriting – Mariah Carey, Simone Porter, Justin Gray, Lindsey Ray, Tor Erik Hermansen, Mikkel Eriksen *Production, instruments, programming – Def Jam, Disney Music Group Charts Radio and release history Category:Songs Category:Oz the Great and Powerful Category:Closing songs